About Holy Cross

On Wednesday, May 27, at 9:00 am a community march was held in San Pedro under the theme, “Justice For All”!!!!! This march was designed to increase awareness of the abuse suffered by women and children here in San Pedro and throughout Belize. It also focused on how the local Police Department must respond to domestic violence under the Violence Against Women Act of 2007.

The students from Holy Cross were very excited to participate in this march as it was the culmination of a year long educational commitment to breaking the cycle of domestic violence. From the beginning of Holy Cross in 2006, NO corporal punishment has been permitted. This stance has required re-educating teachers who may themselves have been lashed at school, re-educating parents who often expect their children to be beaten if they misbehave and re-educating our students who sometimes don't believe they are misbehaving if they aren't whipped.

We have been assisted in our efforts to promote non-violent discipline by Dr. Kim Shackelford, professor of Social Work at the University of Mississippi and Amrei Joerchel, a PHD candidate in Psychology from Vienna, Austria. Both ladies spent several months at Holy Cross teaching the staff effective classroom management and behavior modification techniques as well as working with many of our aggressive or unruly students. Their presence here at the school underscored the desperate need for counselors in all schools.

The staff and students of Holy Cross Anglican School are grateful to the local and national news media for helping spread the Anti-Abuse Message. No one, man, woman or child should be hit, beaten, threatened, stalked, exploited or terrified by another person. Joining together, we can help stop abuse and achieve "Justice for All"!